Victoria Plum loses buying director to Matalan

Craig Hadley, Victoria Plum’s former Head of Buying, will join online furniture retailer MatalanDirect.com as Buying Director.

Hadley has been appointed to oversee strategic category on boarding for the new online home brand, bringing experience with product design and brand development with him from Victoria Plum/

Prior to Victoria Plum Hadley was the Buying Manager for Globe Union/PJH Group, one of the world’s largest suppliers of plumbing products and PJH Europe’s largest bathroom and kitchen supplier and distributor. They were also the largest and longest established supply partner to The Kingfisher Group. In addition, Hadley was part of the team that introduced Aldi to the UK market in the late 1980s.

His remit at MatalanDirect.com will focus on refining and diversifying the product offering as well as ensuring that the pricing and range reflects the needs of the Matalan consumer. This encompasses the best product experience and looking at information, photography and customer journey.

Commenting on the new position, Hadley said “This is an exciting role to take on as MatalanDirect.com has fantastic potential to become one of the leading online home retailers in the UK. With over 12.5m loyal customers and supported by the powerhouse of Matalan on the high street, the future looks bright for the brand. My previous experience will fit well with the direction MatalanDirect.com is heading in and I look forward to being part of the success story.”

Launched in July, MatalanDirect.com is an online-only home brand, offering furniture and larger home items outside of Matalan’s existing accessories range. A subsidiary brand of Matalan Retail Ltd, MatalanDirect.com operates as a separate online entity.

Source : Veebs Sabharwal - Retail Gazette
www.retailgazette.co.uk/blog/2015/12/matalan-direct-hires-victoria-plums-head-of-buying